Page 80 of Inevitable

“Huh?” He glanced away from Jonathan and shook his head as if to clear it. “Oh yeah.” He grinned, pulling her into his side.

“And what about you, Jonathan?” Lea asked, turning her attention on him.

“What about me?” He sipped his water, the sun glinting off his sunglasses.

“Are you seeing anyone?”

“If I say no, you’re not going to try to fix me up with another one of your friends, are you?”

I swallowed hard, blinking a few times as I tried to dislodge the cracker from my throat.Fix him up? With her friends?And worst of all, it didn’t sound like this would be the first time.

“Need some water, kiddo?” Dad asked, handing me a bottle.

I accepted, gulping it down. Some dribbled out of my mouth, sliding down my chin before dropping between my breasts. I could feel Jonathan’s eyes on me, watching that droplet as if he were a man crawling through the desert desperate for water. I wondered if he, like me, was thinking back to the night of the whiskey tasting. He’d spent more time sampling my body than the alcohol, dripping the liquor onto some of my most sensitive parts before lapping it off. I’d done the same until we were drunk off each other.

“The offer’s always there.” She grinned.

“Thanks, but I’m good.”

“So…does that mean you’re seeing someone?” she asked.

“Lea,” Dad chided. “Leave the poor man alone.”

“Okay.” She shrugged. “All right. I’ll leave him be. Though you do seem happier lately.”

I couldn’t help stealing a glance at Jonathan, pride filling my chest as he smiled. “I am happy. It’s been nice reconnecting with Sumner this summer.”

Dad smiled. “I’m glad it worked out so well.”

I swallowed back my guilt. My poor dad had no idea.

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Well, this is unusual,” Ian joked as I joined him at the table. “You inviting me to lunch.”

I took a seat and began perusing the menu, though my mind was elsewhere. This was Sumner’s last week at the Wolfe Group. A week after that, she’d be moving to Palo Alto.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about Sumner,” I said, sweat prickling at my forehead.

“Hm.” Ian glanced up from his menu, completely oblivious. “Is this about the coaching business? She told me you’d let her take you on as a client. That was generous of you.”

I frowned, not sure I understood his tone. “It wasn’tgenerousof me. If anything, she’s being generous with her time. And she’s good at it.”

“She’s always had a big heart. Always wanted to help people,” he said with an offhand tone.

“This is about more than helping people,” I said. “It’s her passion. And I think she could make a good living doing something she loves.”

“I can appreciate that, but she’s always talked about getting her MBA. I don’t want her to give up on that dream now. Not when she’s so close.”

“What if her dreams changed?” I asked, thinking of myself. Thinking about all the conversations Sumner and I had had. Maybe I was overstepping, but I was the one she’d confided in. And every time she’d tried to talk to Ian about it, he’d been dismissive of her ideas. Which was why I’d felt the need to bring it up with Ian myself, not that she wasn’t fully capable of handling herself. But I knew Ian better than anyone. I wanted to believe I knew Sumner better than anyone.

He shook his head, taking a sip of water before setting the glass back down. “She’s young. She’s still learning about the world.”

I gnashed my teeth. “She’s smart, confident. Hell, she’s completely made me reevaluate my life.”

“That’s great,” he sighed. “And I know you care about her and have her best interests at heart.”

I nodded, though I wasn’t sure we had the same definition of what was best for Sumner.